Senator Joseph Lieberman, Vice President Al Gore's running mate, publicly
issued allegations that the Republican Party was bussing paid operatives
to Florida for the expressed purpose of intimidating local election officials
into stopping the manual recount. Other Democrat spinmeisters are now
running amok on the airwaves decrying any public displays of Republican
outrage as "dangerous." In effect, this is the Vast Right Wing
Conspiracy revisited, where anyone uncomfortable with Democrat shenanigans
is a vicious partisan; therefore, their indignation is evil in its intent.

Not only is this approach pitiful, it reveals just how little they know
about their "opposition."

The
rallies and protests I've seen on the television have all the hallmarks
of a "FReep." FReep is a term coined several years ago by the
registered users at FreeRepublic.com, a political action web-site for
conservatives. The "Sore Loserman 2000" signs now peppering
mainstream news casts were not compiled by the Republican Party. This
ingenious phrase was coined by three registered users, "CPL Baum,"
"Registered," and "Mass Exodus." [Click here for the
story or here to buy
t-shirts]

The now famous "Cops Cheer," heard in the background of Washington
reporter's newscasts, originated in the weekly Washington, D.C. protests
by, yet again, FreeRepublic. On their own time and their own dime, this
loosely knit group of motivated citizens has been holding peaceful protests
across the country for at least two years. If the Republican Party was
actually paying protestors, as Senator Lieberman would have us believe,
then "Angelwood" and several other "Freepers" have
considerable back pay coming to them.

Obviously, it's easier for Senator Lieberman to believe the Republican
Party is bussing people in and paying them to protest; the alternative
means that a genuine ground swell of disgust is now leaving the privacy
of living rooms and spilling into the streets. Senator Lieberman would
like to believe these protestors are simply cheap political hacks, ready
to mouth any slogan for the almighty dollar; the alternative means that
average men and women are using their holiday time to make their voice
heard at such a critical juncture in our nation's history. After taking
such a disastrous hit with their notorious 5-page military memorandum,
they can't afford any more losses in the public relations war and must
immediately attempt to discredit any voice of dissent.

Their response backfired. The buzz is that several otherwise complacent
groups are now active and outraged. Instead of sitting back, watching
as "dimples" are divined while bona fide military ballots are
discarded, they plan to also take to the streets in peaceful, but vocal
protest. How many protestors will it take, Senator Lieberman, before you
realize the Republican Party can't possibly be "paying" them
all?

The pinnacle of this debacle was Senator Lieberman's assertion that these
protests were meant to intimidate election board officials. This, from
the campaign that threatened and effected legal action against election
board officials because they weren't following orders? This, from the
campaign that excoriated Secretary of State Harris and maligned Republicans?
This, from the campaign that is actively attempting to influence representatives
to the Electoral College? If the allegation weren't so pathetic, it would
be funny.

Finally, these protestors are not "thugs." They are citizens
of the United States. You presumably want to be our Vice President; that
makes you our servant, not our master. When they, and others like them,
peacefully protest, they are exercising their Constitutionally guaranteed
First Amendment rights; only a fascist would consider this "dangerous."

Linda Prussen-Razzano is an advisory board member and frequent contributor
to Rightgrrl and a columnist for
the American Partisan.